Home · 2016 GMC Yukon Denali Xl 1500 · Complaints

What 497 owners told NHTSA about the 2016 GMC Yukon Denali Xl 1500

These are the actual owner complaints behind this car’s reliability verdict, filed with the federal government, unedited. They’re unverified reports, not confirmed defects: read them as leads for your pre-purchase inspection, not a diagnosis.

All (497)Crash / fire / injury (18)Lights (209)Brakes (95)Electrical system (88)Transmission & drivetrain (71)Engine (57)Steering (20)Suspension (16)Body & structure (13)Speed control (10)Fuel system (9)

71 of 497 complaints match · Transmission & drivetrain · clear filters · page 3 of 3

Oct 31, 2019SuspensionTransmission & drivetrainSpeed control

I HAVE HAD ISSUES WITH THE TRANSMISSION AND POWER OF THE CAR FOR OVER TWO YEARS. I HAVE CONTACTED GMC AND HAVE FOLLOWED EVERYTHING THAT GMC HAVE REQUESTED FOR ME TO DO WITH A VEHICLE. I HAVE TAKEN THE CAR TO FOUR DIFFERENT DEALERSHIPS, HAVE HAD EVERYTHING DONE WITH IT FROM FLUSHING IT THREE TO FOUR TIMES AND HAVE HAD TORQUE CONVERTER REPLACED THE CONTROL VALVE BODY REPLACE. RECALL FOR THE BRAKE PEDAL WAS ALSO DONE. AFTER EVERYTHING THE CAR IS IN WORST CONDITION AT THE MOMENT.

NHTSA ODI 11277300

Oct 28, 2019Transmission & drivetrain

AFTER LEAVING THE DEALERSHIP WHEN GETTING THE BRAKE RECALL UPDATED WITHIN 48HRS MY TRANSMISSION STARTS SHUDDERING! NEVER HAD A SINGLE PROBLEM UNTIL THE RECALL WAS UPDATED! WAS TOLD THERE IS ONLY A FLUID FLUSHING AVAILABLE FOR THE 8CYL TRANSMISSION NOT THE 6CYL! WAS TOLD THAT I WAS OUT OF MY POWER TRAIN AT 82K MILES AND I WOULD HAVE TO PAY OUT OF POCKET TO FIX THE TOURQUE CONVERTER OR BY A NEW TRANSMISSION! PLUS WAS TOLD THERE IS NOTHING THEY CAN DO TILL AFTER JANUARY 2020 BECAUSE THEY ARE BACKED UP FROM OTHER VEHICLES HAVING THE SAME ISSUES! THERE IS A CLASS ACTION LAWSUIT FOR THE 8CYL BUT NOTHING FOR THE 6! WHY? I LOVE MY CAR AND YOU WOULD THINK AT 70K IT WOULD BE MORE RELIABLE AND GM WOULD BACK THEIR PRODUCT! I'M VERY DISAPPOINTED WITH THE MAKERS OF GM AND WITH THE ISSUES I'M LOOKING AT WITH NO RELIEF IN SIGHT I WOULD BE BETTER OFF TRADING FOR A FORD OR ANYTHING OTHER THAN GM! I'M REALLY HOPING THAT IS NOT THE CASE AND GM WILL OFFER A FIX FOR THESE ISSUES!

NHTSA ODI 11271564

Oct 23, 2019Transmission & drivetrainEngine

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2016 GMC YUKON XL. WHILE DRIVING AT LOW OR HIGH SPEEDS, THE VEHICLE SHOOK VIOLENTLY AS IF IT WOULD FALL APART. ALSO, THE CHECK ENGINE WARNING INDICATOR ILLUMINATED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO CAPPELLINO BUICK GMC (5411 TRANSIT RD, BUFFALO, NY 14221) WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED WITH A TORQUE CONVERTER SHUDDER FAILURE AND A TRANSMISSION FLUSH WAS COMPLETED. THE DEALER ADVISED THE CONTACT TO DRIVE FOR 200 MILES TO CORRECT THE FAILURE; HOWEVER, THE FAILURE CONTINUED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN BACK TO THE DEALER WHERE ANOTHER TRANSMISSION FLUSH WAS COMPLETED. THE CONTACT WAS ALSO INFORMED THAT THE SHEET METAL ON THE CROSS-MEMBER WAS CAUSING THE VIBRATION. THE CROSS MEMBER WAS REPAIRED. AFTER THE REPAIRS, THE CABIN OF THE VEHICLE WAS UNCOMFORTABLE WITH UNEVEN PRESSURE AND A HIGH VELOCITY VIBRATION. THE SAME DEALER AND WEST HERR CHEVROLET OF WILLIAMSVILLE (8040 TRANSIT RD, WILLIAMSVILLE, NY 14221) PERFORMED SEVERAL TRANSMISSION FLUSHES. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE AND A CLAIM WAS FILED. THE CONTACT WAS COMPENSATED FOR THE FAILURE; HOWEVER, THE FAILURE CONTINUED. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE VEHICLE WAS CURRENTLY AT THE WEST HERR DEALER AS THE VEHICLE WAS STALLING, THE RPMS INCREASED, AND THE TRACTION AND CHECK ENGINE WARNING INDICATORS ILLUMINATED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 42,241.

NHTSA ODI 11270433

Sep 23, 2019Transmission & drivetrain

TRANSMISSION HAS NOT SHIFTED CORRECTLY. SHUDDERING OCCURS OR SHIFTS ARE NOT SMOOTH

NHTSA ODI 11257575

Sep 16, 2019Transmission & drivetrain

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2016 GMC YUKON. AFTER STARTING THE ENGINE, THE VEHICLE WOULD NOT OPERATE WHILE IN THE DRIVE OR REVERSE POSITIONS. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO SHEEHAN BUICK GMC (2800 SEVERAL HWY, POMPANO BEACH, FL 33064) WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT THE TRANSMISSION WAS FAULTY AND NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE TRANSMISSION WAS REPLACED AND THE FAILURE WAS REMEDIED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 144,000. THE VIN WAS INVALID.

NHTSA ODI 11255883

Aug 31, 2019SteeringTransmission & drivetrainEngine

THE TRANSMISSION WENT OUT, THE ENGINE IS MAKING A NOISE AND A SERVICE CENTER SAID LOTS OF GM'S VEHICLES ARE HAVING THE SAME PROBLEM THE POWER STEERING SYSTEM ALSO STOP WORKING AND I HAVE TO REPLACE IT

NHTSA ODI 11252626

Aug 26, 2019Transmission & drivetrain

VEHICLE BEGAN HESITATING DURING ACCELERATION. PROBLEM OCCURRED INTERMITTENTLY AT FIRST BUT NOW OCCURS EACH TIME THE VEHICLE IS DRIVEN. CHECK ENGINE LIGHT COMES ON OCCASIONALLY. THIS JERKING CAUSES SAFETY ISSUES WHEN TRYING TO INCREASE SPEED. MANY COMPLAINTS ARE ON LINE FROM OTHER OWNERS WITH SAME ISSUE

NHTSA ODI 11246350

Aug 14, 2019Transmission & drivetrainEngine

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2016 GMC YUKON XL. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE CHECK ENGINE WARNING INDICATOR ILLUMINATED AND THE VEHICLE SHUDDERED WHEN SHIFTING GEARS. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC WHO STATED THAT THE TRANSMISSION, TRANSMISSION FLUID, AND WIRING HARNESS NEEDED TO BE REPLACED; HOWEVER, PARTS NUMBER: 700, 711, 2429, 7371, AND 87571 WERE ON BACKORDER. THE CONTACT CALLED TED BRITT CHEVROLET (46990 HARRY BYRD HWY, STERLING, VA 20164, (703) 955-3610), BUT THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS CONTACTED AND STATED THAT THEY WOULD ATTEMPT TO LOCATE THE PARTS; HOWEVER, NO FURTHER ASSISTANCE WAS PROVIDED. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE VEHICLE WAS A LEMON. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 65,350.

NHTSA ODI 11243866

Aug 6, 2019Transmission & drivetrainElectrical system

BRAKE LIGHTS & TORQUE CONVERTER 2016 YUKON DENALI. THE BRAKE LIGHT IS OUT ON THE PASSENGER SIDE. I BROUGHT IT TO THE DEALERSHIP, AND IT IS WITHIN 2 WEEKS OF THE WARRANTY EXPIRING. THEY HAD TO ORDER THE PART BECAUSE THERE'S A NATIONAL BACKORDER FOR THE ASSEMBLY. SO CLEARLY I'M NOT THE ONLY ONE. DID SOME RESEARCH AND THIS IS APPARENTLY AN ONGOING PROBLEM. THIS VEHICLE HAS BEEN A HASSLE FROM THE START. I'M BEGINNING TO BELIEVE THERE IS AN ELECTRICAL ISSUE AS WELL. I HAD A BATTERY ISSUE THAT THE DEALERSHIP COULDN'T FIGURE OUT EVEN AFTER SHOWING THEM THE ONSTAR ALERT. ORIGINALLY I WAS TOLD ONSTAR WAS PROBABLY JUST SENDING IT AS A MILEAGE ALERT. TURNS OUT AFTER I INSISTED THEY PUT THE VEHICLE ON A MACHINE AND IT SHOWED THE BATTERY WAS INDEED FAULTY. MULTIPLE THINGS HAVE GONE OUT ON A VEHICLE WITH BARELY 30,000 MILES ON IT. THE TORQUE CONVERTER IS ALSO A MAJOR CONCERN BECAUSE IT 'SHED' METAL PIECES WITH THE CAR HAVING LESS THAN 20,000 MILES THEY ONLY DRAINED THE TRANSMISSION FLUID BECAUSE THAT'S WHAT THE BULLETIN TOLD THEM TO DO. HOW IS THIS NOT GOING TO HAPPEN AGAIN? MY YUKON DROVE LIKE A LAWNMOWER VIBRATING AND HOPPING. THIS IS THE WORST VEHICLE I'VE EVER PURCHASED, AND WITH THE ISSUES THAT KEEP PILING UP IT LOOKS LIKE WE AREN'T ANYWHERE NEAR THE BOTTOM OF THE PROBLEMS.

NHTSA ODI 11242044

Jul 9, 2019Transmission & drivetrainElectrical systemLights

AT LESS THAN 3 YEARS OLD AND 60K MILES, THE FOLLOWING HAS OCCURRED AT DIFFERENT TIMES UP UNTIL NOW: OVERALL ELECTRICAL MALFUNCTION INCLUDING DISPLAY ILLUMINATION FAILURE (DISPLAY GOES COMPLETELY BLACK AND/OR DIM WHILE DRIVING - CANNOT SEE SPEEDOMETER ETC. THIS HAS HAPPENED MULTIPLE TIMES WHILE DRIVING ON BOTH THE HIGHWAY AND SURFACE STREETS, INCLUDING DAYTIME AND NIGHTTIME), AUDIO/ENTERTAINMENT SYSTEM GLITCHES (RADIO VOLUME CHANGES TO AND GETS STUCK RANDOMLY ON HIGHEST VOLUME SETTING (WAS NEVER EVEN SET TO THIS LEVEL) WHILE DRIVING, CAUSING SUDDEN DISTRACTION/DISRUPTION), TAIL LIGHT MALFUNCTION (INTERMITTENTLY STOPS WORKING BOTH LEFT AND RIGHT SIDES), AND NOW THE MOTOR TO THE SUNROOF HAS DIED (OCCURRED WHILE DRIVING AND AT A MOMENT WHEN IT WAS NECESSARY TO CLOSE FOR SAFETY ON THE HIGHWAY.) THE TRANSMISSION IS DEFECTIVE (FOR THE SECOND TIME - OFF SHIFTS AND DOWNSHIFTS UNEXPECTEDLY WHILE DRIVING AT BOTH LOWER AND HIGHER SPEEDS. HAS HAPPENED ON THE HIGHWAY REQUIRING ME TO PULL OVER AND RESTART THE VEHICLE.) THESE INCIDENTS HAVE BEEN OCCURRING FOR THE PAST SEVERAL MONTHS, BUT BECAUSE THEY HAVE BEEN INTERMITTENT IT HAS BEEN HARD TO PINPOINT WHEN TO BRING IN TO THE DEALERSHIP FOR INSPECTION.

NHTSA ODI 11230316

Jun 23, 2019Transmission & drivetrain

I HAVE ONLY OWNED THIS CAR SINCE 3/29/19 AND SEVERAL TIMES NOW MY YUKON'S CHECK ENGINE LIGHT HAS CAME ON AFTER THE TRANSMISSION BUCKS, JUMPS OR JERKS HARD, NOT SURE WHAT TO CALL IT BUT IT BUCKED OR SHOVED MY CAR FORWARD WHEN TRYING TO SLOW DOWN OR STOP (NOT PRESSING GAS PEDAL). THIS COULD BE DANGEROUS AS IT INTERFERES WITH TRYING TO STOP THE VEHICLE. IT WAS SUCH A HARD JOLT THAT IT FOR A MINUTE I THOUGHT ANOTHER CAR REAR ENDED ME. THIS HAS HAPPENED AT LEAST TWICE AFTER I PRESSED THE BRAKE TO BEGIN SLOWING DOWN AS I WAS PREPARING TO PULL INTO A PARKING LOT, I WAS PROBABLY GOING AROUND 20MPH. IT ALSO HAPPENED TWICE WHILE ACCELERATING ONTO A ROAD, PROBABLY GOING 35 MPH AND JUST FELT A JOLT LIKE SOMETHING KICKED MY CAR FORWARD SUDDENLY. I'VE BEEN TOLD THAT THE JERKING PROBLEM IS RELATED TO ISSUES WITH THE TRANSMISSION, POSSIBLY THE TORQUE CONVERTER AND CAUSES GEARS NOT TO FUNCTION PROPERLY. I'M GOING TO PUT IN MY MOST RECENT DATE THAT THIS HAPPENED ON YOUR FORM BUT IT'S HAPPENED MORE THAN ONCE.

NHTSA ODI 11221979

May 13, 2019Transmission & drivetrainBrakes

WHEN IN TRAFFIC AT SLOW SPEEDS THE BRAKE SYSTEM SHUTS DOWN AND TAKES MY BODY WEIGHT TO STOP CAR. HAD CHECKED AND NO VISIBLE LEAK. NOW GMC HAS A FIX BUT CHARGE TO FIX IF OVER WARRANTY MILEAGE. SECOND ISSUE IS THE TRANSMISSION WENT AT 96,000 MILES WHILE HIGHWAY DRIVING LOOSING ALL TOP END GEARS AT 65 MPH. GMC DID NOTHING BUT DEALER HELPED ON THO AS WELL

NHTSA ODI 11207182

Apr 30, 2019Transmission & drivetrain

MY 2016 YUKON DENALI XL LURCHES FORWARD WHILE DRIVING ACTING LIKE IT IS HAVING ISSUES SHIFTING GEARS. I HAVE ALSO HAD AN ISSUE TWICE NOW WHERE WHEN I SHIFT FROM PARK TO REVERSE IN MY DRIVEWAY MY VEHICLE GOES FORWARD INSTEAD.

NHTSA ODI 11204871

Feb 20, 2019Transmission & drivetrain

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2016 GMC YUKON. WHILE THE VEHICLE WAS ACCELERATING FROM A STOP, THE TRANSMISSION SHUDDERED AND FAILED TO RESPOND APPROPRIATELY. THE RPM GAUGE WAS ERRATIC AND FLASHED. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO MARVIN K. BROWN AUTO CENTER (1441 CAMINO DEL RIO SOUTH, AUTO CIR, SAN DIEGO, CA 92108) WHERE IT WAS DETERMINED THAT A POWER TRAIN WARRANTY PROVISION WAS NOT AN AVAILABLE OPTION AND THE MANUFACTURER HAD NOT ISSUED A POWER TRAIN RECALL. THE DEALER DIAGNOSED THAT THE TRANSMISSION NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE REMAINED AT THE DEALER AND HAD NOT BEEN REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE VIN WAS NOT AVAILABLE. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 130,268.

NHTSA ODI 11181454

Jul 20, 2018Transmission & drivetrain

AT 76,000 MILES THE TRANSMISSION BEGAN TO SHUDDER VIOLENTLY AND HESTITATE. DEALERSHIP GMC WANTS ME TO SPEND 400 ON A FLUID UPGRADE AND HOPE IT FIXES IT IF NOT, I WILL HAVE TO BUY A NEW UPDATED TORQUE CONVERTER BECAUSE THEY SHREWDLY TOOK THE DRIVETRAIN WARRANTY DOWN TO 60000 MILES MONTHS BEFORE I BOUGHT NEW

NHTSA ODI 11112728

Jan 3, 2018Transmission & drivetrainElectrical system

ELECTRICAL ISSUES: WHILE DRIVING THE INFORMATION PANEL GO'S BLANK. WE HAVE EXPERIENCED THIS TWICE WHILE DRIVING, WE LOSE THE SPEEDOMETER, TECH, AND EVERYTHING ON THE DISPLAY PANEL. RADIO, SKIPS CHANNELS EVEN AFTER THE SWITCH WAS REPLACED. DRIVE TRAIN: DOWN SHIFTS ABRUPTLY WHILE ACCELERATING ONTO INTERSTATE ON RAMPS, EITHER LUNGING FORWARD OR LUNGING BACKWARD. BEEN IN THE GM SHOP THREE TIME TO TRY AND FIX ISSUE. THERE HAVE BEEN BULLETINS ISSUED TO TRY AND FIX WITHOUT SUCCESS TO-DATE. THEY ARE AWARE THAT IS A PROBLEM, BECAUSE FORD AND GM ON THE 2018'S, I WAS TOLD BY THE SALES PERSONS THAT THIS ISSUE WAS FIXED. I AM AWARE OF THE CHEVY TRANSMISSION ISSUE AND I AM CONCERNED THAT THIS MAYBE A SIMILAR SAFETY CONCERN. AS FAR AS I KNOW THE TRANSMISSION HAS NOT JUMPED OUT OF GEAR ON ITS OWN. I AM LOOKING AT A SHOP TICKET AND THEY ARE CALLING THE ISSUE A SHUTTER DURING TORQUE CONVERTER LOCKS UP.

NHTSA ODI 11058223

Oct 27, 2016SteeringSuspensionTransmission & drivetrain

SINCE THE DAY I PURCHASED THIS 2016 GMC YUKON XL DENALI THERE HAS BEEN A VIBRATION IN WHAT I THINK IS THE PASSENGER REAR END. I'VE TAKEN IT IN 3 TIMES AND EACH TIME THE DEALER AND THE GM REPRESENTATIVE SAY IT IS "WITHIN SPEC." THIS PROBLEM HAS PERSISTED. THE VEHICLE IS NOW ALMOST UN-DRIVABLE DUE TO THE SHAKING. IT AFFECTS THE STEERING WHEEL AT ALL SPEEDS. THIS HAPPENS AT ALL SPEEDS ON ALL TERRAINS. THIS HAPPENS WHEN THE VEHICLE IS COLD AS WELL AS WARM/HOT. THE VEHICLE WILL SOMETIMES JERK TO THE LEFT OR RIGHT WHEN THE SHAKING GETS REAL BAD. THIS VEHICLE IS BECOMING DANGEROUS TO DRIVE BUT I HAVE TO USE IT. I AM NOT THE ONLY ONE WITH THIS ISSUE AND WOULD APPRECIATE SOME HELP.

NHTSA ODI 10919298

Jul 26, 2016SteeringSuspensionTransmission & drivetrain

EXCESSIVE VIBRATION/BUFFETING DRONE ISSUES (AT ALL SPEEDS OF THE VEHICLE) HAVE CAUSED SEVERE HEALTH ISSUES AND SAFETY HAZARDS FROM DRIVING THE VEHICLE. WITHIN THE FIRST 8,000 MILES OF OWNING THE CAR, THE CAR HAS NOW BEEN IN SERVICE FOR 40 DAYS AS GM TRIES AND REMEDY THE PROBLEM, BUT THERE DOES NOT APPEAR TO BE A FIX. SO FAR, DIAGNOSTIC TESTS INDICATED THAT THERE WAS A FAULTY BEARING IN THE REAR DIFFERENTIAL THAT LED TO SIGNIFICANT ABNORMAL WEAR THROUGHOUT THE DIFFERENTIAL AND THE DIFFERENTIAL NEEDED TO BE REBUILT. WHEN REBUILDING, THEY DISCOVERED THAT THE DISASSEMBLED DIFFERENTIAL HAD HEAVILY SCORED BEARINGS AND METAL SHAVING THROUGHOUT EVERY BEARING. RING GEAR AND PINION HAD IRREGULAR WEAR CAUSING A DRONE IN THE VEHICLE. RACE SURFACES WEAR GROUND AND SCARRED BAD.THE REBUILT DIFFERENTIAL DID NOT FIX THE ISSUE AND NOW AFTER HAVING FOUR NEW TIRES AND ROAD BALANCING, THE PROBLEMS DIDN'T DIMINISH BUT WERE EXACERBATED. AFTER REBUILDING THE DIFFERENTIAL AGAIN, GM HAS NOW DETERMINED THAT THE REAR AXLE MAY NEED TO BE REPLACED AND ENGINEERS ARE LOOKING INTO THE PROBLEM FURTHER. THE STEERING WHEEL SHAKES AND THE CAR HAS A TERRIBLE VIBRATION THAT WORSENS EVERY TIME GM ATTEMPTS TO SERVICE THE VEHICLE. THIS SEEMS TO BE A WELL-DOCUMENTED PROBLEM THAT GM HAS AVOIDED FIXING. WE ADVISE OTHER CONSUMERS TO BE AWARE OF THE SERIOUS SAFETY PROBLEMS RELATED TO THE POOR MANUFACTURING OF THE VEHICLE AND INABILITY OF GM TO REMEDY THE PROBLEM.

NHTSA ODI 10888624

May 25, 2016Transmission & drivetrain

THE VEHICLE'S TRANSMISSION UNEXPECTEDLY SLIPS OUT OF GEAR BETWEEN 20 AND 35 MPH. WHEN THIS OCCURS, PRESSING THE ACCELERATOR MERELY REVS THE ENGINE, WITHOUT FORWARD MOTION. THIS OCCURRED 4 TIMES IN THE FIRST 600 MILES OF OPERATION. WITHOUT POWER, I CAN'T NAVIGATE OUT OF A DANGEROUS SITUATION.

NHTSA ODI 10870916

Jan 11, 2016SuspensionTransmission & drivetrain

I LEASED A 2016 YUKON DENALI XL ON 9/15/15. IT HAS TWO MAJOR PROBLEMS. 1. BUFFETING/PRESSURE NOISE - A NOISE AS IF A WINDOW IS CRACKED, EXCEPT IT'S NOT CRACKED. THIS OCCURS AT SPEEDS FROM 24MPH AND UP AND CAUSES EARS TO POP AND IS NOTICEABLE TO VIRTUALLY EVERY PASSENGER I HAVE HAD. 2. WHOLE-TRUCK VIBRATION - OCCURS BETWEEN 70-80MPH IN ENTIRE VEHICLE. WHEEL REPLACEMENTS, TIRE REPLACEMENTS, ROAD-FORCE BALANCING, DRIVESHAFT REPLACEMENT, DRIVESHAFT "BALANCING", ETC....NOTHING HAS FIXED IT. I HAVE DRIVEN 13 2016 YUKON, YUKON XL, TAHOE AND SUBURBANS. EVERY SINGLE ONE HAS THE BUFFETING ISSUES. ALL BUT ONE HAS THE VIBRATION ISSUES. GM HAS ISSUED A PI STATING THAT THE ROOF BOWS MAY HAVE COME DISCONNECTED AND THEY NEED TO BE REATTACHED. THE ISSUE HERE IS THAT REATTACHING THEM DOESN'T FIX THE BUFFETING ISSUE. I HAVE A DATE-STAMPED LOG OF EVERY DEALER VISIT, CONVERSATION, EMAIL, ETC. AND AM GLAD TO SHARE IT. THESE ISSUES ARE RIDICULOUS TO OCCUR IN ANY CAR MUCH LESS A 75K FLAGSHIP CAR THAT PULLS IN 3-7K IN PROFIT FOR GM/DEALERS PER VEHICLE.

NHTSA ODI 10819507

Dec 9, 2015Transmission & drivetrain

ON 11/13/15, "SERVICE 4WD SYSTEM" MESSAGE APPEARED ON THE SCREEN RENDERING THE VEHICLE UNSAFE TO DRIVE. THIS ISSUE OCCURRED LESS THAN A WEEK AFTER PURCHASE (297 MILES ON THE ODOMETER AT THE TIME THAT THE ISSUE OCCURRED). SPECIFIC ISSUE: WHEN THE TRANSFER CASE WAS SET TO "AUTO" IT AUTOMATICALLY SWITCHED TO THE "4WDLO" SETTING, WHICH CAUSED THE VEHICLE TO LOCK-UP SPECIFICALLY WHEN TURNING OR IN REVERSE GEAR. I HAD THE VEHICLE TOWED TO DEALER AND WAS TOLD THAT THE TRANSFER CASE CONTROL MODULE SOFTWARE NEEDED TO BE UPDATED / REFLASHED AND THAT THE ENCODER MOTOR / ACTUATOR NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE DEALER CONTACTED GM AND WAS NOTIFIED THAT THE ENCODER MOTOR / ACTUATOR WAS ON NATIONAL BACKORDER. THE DEALER RECEIVED AND INSTALLED THE PART ON 12/8/15 (25 DAYS AFTER THE ISSUE OCCURRED). I FORMALLY SUBMITTED A COMPLAINT TO GM ON 11/20/15 (REF # 8-1674527570) SO THEY ARE AWARE OF THE ISSUE.

NHTSA ODI 10809314

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Working with the data? Download all 497 complaints as CSV · fetched from NHTSA July 25, 2026

How to use these: a complaint is one owner’s report, filed voluntarily and published unverified. Patterns matter more than any single story. If several owners describe the same failure at similar mileage, put that system at the top of your pre-purchase inspection list. Back to the full 2016 GMC Yukon Denali Xl 1500 verdict →